It Was the Age of Wisdom, It Is the Age of Hope Commentary on "It Was the Best of Times, It Was the Worst of Times"

In a spirit of intellectual honestly, Franks (1997) provides an evaluation of the best and worst of behavior therapy from the eyes of a founding member. In so doing, he notes that conceptual and theoretical advancement of behavior therapy as a science has given way to professional advancement. In this commentary, it is agreed that behavior therapy, in its present form, is less descriptive of the actual practices of a unique group of scientists and practitioners who call themselves behavior therapists because of what they do. It is suggested that the hope of behavior therapy rests in our ability to reestablish our identity and integrity with basic behavioral principles and functional, process-oriented thinking.